The Southern Company (NYSE:SO) Shares Acquired by Nicolet Advisory Services LLC

Nicolet Advisory Services LLC boosted its holdings in The Southern Company (NYSE:SO) by 48.3% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 5,383 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 1,753 shares during the quarter. Nicolet Advisory Services LLC’s holdings in Southern were worth $380,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in SO. Voisard Asset Management Group Inc. acquired a new position in Southern in the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. Scarborough Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Southern in the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its stake in Southern by 62.0% in the 1st quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 444 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 170 shares during the period. BKM Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Southern in the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. Finally, Financial Synergies Wealth Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Southern by 3,628.6% during the 1st quarter. Financial Synergies Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 522 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $37,000 after buying an additional 508 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 64.10% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Kimberly S. Greene sold 9,126 shares of Southern stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.04, for a total transaction of $684,815.04. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 121,504 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,117,660.16. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other Southern news, CEO Anthony L. Wilson sold 6,900 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.61, for a total value of $535,509.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 85,309 shares in the company, valued at $6,620,831.49. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Kimberly S. Greene sold 9,126 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.04, for a total transaction of $684,815.04. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 121,504 shares in the company, valued at $9,117,660.16. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 28,026 shares of company stock worth $2,151,644. Corporate insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

SO has been the subject of a number of research reports. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on shares of Southern from $74.00 to $71.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, June 24th. BMO Capital Markets restated an “outperform” rating and set a $76.00 price target (up previously from $72.00) on shares of Southern in a report on Monday, April 1st. Argus raised their price target on shares of Southern from $75.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 15th. Scotiabank cut their price target on shares of Southern from $80.00 to $77.00 and set a “sector outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 22nd. Finally, UBS Group downgraded shares of Southern from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their price target for the company from $78.00 to $76.00 in a report on Thursday, April 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Southern currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $76.50.

Southern Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:SO traded up $0.09 on Friday, hitting $81.40. 2,730,034 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,243,845. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $78.78 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $73.20. The Southern Company has a one year low of $61.56 and a one year high of $82.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.67, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a current ratio of 0.92. The firm has a market capitalization of $89.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.03, a PEG ratio of 2.92 and a beta of 0.51.

Southern (NYSE:SO) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 2nd. The utilities provider reported $1.03 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.90 by $0.13. Southern had a net margin of 16.74% and a return on equity of 12.07%. The business had revenue of $6.65 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.59 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.79 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 2.6% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts expect that The Southern Company will post 4 earnings per share for the current year.

Southern Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 6th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 19th will be given a dividend of $0.72 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 19th. This represents a $2.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.54%. Southern’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 74.42%.

Southern Profile

The Southern Company, through its subsidiaries, engages in the generation, transmission, and distribution of electricity. The company also develops, constructs, acquires, owns, and manages power generation assets, including renewable energy projects and sells electricity in the wholesale market; and distributes natural gas in Illinois, Georgia, Virginia, and Tennessee, as well as provides gas marketing services, gas distribution operations, and gas pipeline investments operations.